The Dickinson press., 1887-05-28
POPULATION AND FOOD.
REPUTATION OF THE ARGUMENTS
OF A MODERN MALTHuS.

OF A MODERN MALTHuS.
In Almost Every Country There is Food
to Snarc-.yhy NIaltllus' Doctrine Is no
Longer Plausible-The Earth's Food
Producing Capabilities.
The current number of The Forum con-
tains n sprishtly article by Thomas W. Knox,
enti:!cl standing Room Only" 1t shows
tha: several countries i'll the world contain so
many people that they can scarcely walk about
without iostling each other. For example,
the statement is made that Java has a!S in
ha!itants to- tho square mile, Japan 234 Italy
2tG, Belgium +Sl, and the Netherlands 3l2.
The author then states that there is hardly {;
country whose population is diminishing,
Will toat of most countries is increasing
with wonderful if not with alarming rapi',ty.
This increase of population is largely due to
the absence of wars aud better sanitary con-
ditions.
Mr.. lSnox thinks that it is time to study
the philosophy of Nautilus, vino held that
population, unchecked, increased in geon,et-
rical r";io, while food can only bn made TO
increase in arithmotical ratio. He also argue,
t'!nt checks OH population nrc absolutely
necessary, and claims advantages for war,
Iestiicnrr, famine and most of the destructive
vices. IL" states that few of the countries in
which there is ''Staniing room only" can rru-
lurc foo. enough for the inhabitants, and
shows by official census tables that the num-
hcr of those countries is increasing very
rapidly. lie predicts that our own will 10
added to the list of ovcrIopulat,d countries
i'll 10 very distant futurc. At present few of
the original thirteen states produce food
enough to supply all tho inhabitants. Tho
lin" that divides the states that do not pro-
ducc food enough for the mopl,. from those
that do is constantly moving farther west.
NO CAUSE FOR ALARM.
This modern Maltlnls has no cause for
alarm. In almost every country in ilo world
there is food enough, and to spare In nearly
every land food producers are discouraged
10y nverpro'!ucton. At ono time farmers
found no fault with prices, hut complained
because tlrv could raise hut little. Now they
complain of low prices, and find fault because
so much is produced. English papers state
that there was never II time i'll the history of
the country when days wages would Iur-
chase SO much food. During last year sugar.
soil for II penny pound, and many farmers
used it rs a condimcnt or food for cattle and
pigs. Fresh herrings sold in London markets
for l.alflrnny each, and the poorest labor
crs ntc white bread, oranges and bananas.
During several months small fruits wcrp 81
cheap that they commanded only u nominal
price. and some farmers and gardeners used
them to fertiizc their land. One vessel
brought .t00oO carc;ssas of frozen mutton
from one of the Falkland islands, where it
was bought for a emmy pound. Two steam
ship companies paid n penny n bushel for tho
privilege of carrying wheat in bags from
American to English ports, 50 that the grain
| OF civilization was cheaper i'll Liverpool than
i'll Baltimore. Il,e price of farm products is
SO low in Great Britain that tho owners of
several large estates declare tlint they can re.
aiiZe moro from them as game preserves than
MS cultivated farms.
Ihc truth is, tho doctrine of Alalthls is an
exploded hu;n!uS. 1t was n plausible theory
at the time Ia" wrote but the introduction of
machinery or farms, the use of steam i'll asri-
culture, the Improvement i'll breeds of ami
mails, the utilization of products formerly
wasted, the new methods of preserving fruits,
vegetables. meat and fish, and last but most,
thu increased speed OF vessels and the low
rates for carrying all kinds of articles intended
FOR food, have produced n revolution and de
stroycd tho philosophy of the pessimist of the
dinner table. We hear of coal famines and
water fa,nincs, but there arc no food famine,
anywhere, and there is no prospect Of any.
FOOD PRODUCING CAPABILITIES
We have hardly begun to test the food pro.
ducng capabilities of tho earth. a German
traveller declares that Siberia is capable OF
producing grain enough to supply all western
Europe with bread. An English authority
/ ,tI
hushcl in the interior of Asatic Turkey last
year, and ;!!at many farmers did not find it
profitable tn harvest their fields Tho island
of Iiayti is scapablc of producing enough y;,,ns
and bnnanas to feed 2o, 900, 600 people Hardly
any, portion Of Africa except tho narrow val
Icy OF the Nil, has been brought under culti-
vation. But an Insignificant part OF Aus
tralia has been devoted to the production of
food. South America, in Tho opinion of
Humboldt, is the grand division of the earth
capable OF producing, the most food: still II
large portion of itrc!nas unexp!orcd, and
no good farming is done in the parts that
have been longest settled. 1t could be made
not enly tie :;ranaiy but the stock yard for
supplying Europe with food. Wild cattle
n;c nl'aost os plentiful there as rabbits aro in
Australia end thousands Of them are killed
every year for their i!i,lcs and talow. Sheep
arc raised with scarcely any care, and pigs
turne into lie forests become fat on nuts and
wd fruit No believer III Malthusian phil-
| osoi'!ly ever visited South America.
By selecting le"s of animals that rnn.rro
early, and constantly supplying thom with
suitable food, steers are made to weigh as
. much when they are thirty months old 81, they
formerly did at twice that age. BY the gen
crnl Introduction Of the s.lo the beef and
mutton production oi this country could he
doubled, even il no more Land was devoted to
raising fodder crops Our countrymaI, Seth
Green, originated the expression water farm
ing and demonstrated tlIt;t an acre of water
was capable of pro'lncIr; rs much food as an
acre Of land. Experiments show that German
carp can be raised at about half the price of
the cheapest meat, AMI the prospect is that
most of our small lakes and artificial ponds
will soon le utilized for the production Of
food the same rs thy arc in China AMI Japan
Food proinccrs everywhere are crying for
more mouths to feed, so that they cun got n
better price for what they raise. Bnt tho
prospect is that the cost cf nearly ever: kind
of food will continue TO decline, even if the
population of the earth is ,Ioublcd.-Chicago
/, Times.
Tho Law in Michigan.
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